Hoshinoya Nara adds a guided tour tracing its prison-to-hotel transformation
From 16 September, Hoshino Resorts is giving Hoshinoya Nara's guests a free, 45-minute walk through the Meiji-era prison the hotel was built inside — turning a protected heritage building's most awkward history into the property's own guided narrative.
Hoshino Resorts will begin offering a new guided tour to guests at Hoshinoya Nara from 16 September, tracing the hotel's transformation from a Meiji-era prison into a luxury property, the operator said. The tour, called Toki no Promenade ("Promenade of Time"), runs about 45 minutes, is capped at ten guests per session, is free of charge, and departs daily at 8am; guests book through the hotel's own website by 9pm the previous evening, according to Hoshino Resorts.